Kenneth Moore

Here is my interview with Kenneth Moore and the photos of the Korean dishes that he made. His food presentation is very classy especially, his famous gyeongdan photo! I was very impressed when I saw his gyeongdan photo for the first time. Each rice cake ball looks like a jewel, and the combination of brown tones is very artistic. I’m always learning about food presentation from my readers and Kenneth is one of them.

Check out his maejakgwa (ginger cookies) and pine nut porridge photos, too! He said he is watching my podcasts while riding a stationary bike. He knows what he’ll make right after hardworking exercise. “I’m losing some weight now to eat delicious homemade food soon. I deserve it!”

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He is blogging about how to grow plants indoors and how to lose weight. He wants to share his special skills with many people. You know how much I love those who want to share their knowledge and special skills with as many people as they can. He is one of my awesome readers!

What is your name and where do you live?My name is Kenneth Moore. Online, I’m The Indoor Garden(er), @indoorgarden_er on Twitter and @Komhuus, among other handles. I have lived and cooked Korean food in Canada, Saudi Arabia, and the US. Washington DC, where I grew up and currently live, has great access to Korean cooking supplies, and I have made a lot of tasty dishes from your website!

with my sister Summer and my niece Maretta last fall

What do you do and how many family members do you have?
I have a lot of relatives living in the mid-Atlantic region (Maryland, Virginia, Delaware), but I live in Washington DC with my beau. Currently, I am “FUNemployed”– I just left my job as a science writer at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, in Saudi Arabia, to return to my boyfriend in DC. I am also a garden blogger and President of DC State Fair in my spare time.

How often do you cook Korean food following my recipes?I am vegetarian, and I love how most of your recipes offer a vegetarian option! I try about one recipe every week or two. I often repeat my favorite recipes of yours, modifying them to try to figure out how to make them best with the supplies I have available. I love watching your podcasts while I’m on the stationary bike at the gym–it gives me incentive to keep exercising, because I know I can go cook and eat a delicious, healthy meal afterward!

What are your favorite Korean dishes? Choose 3, please!
How can I choose only three! Maangchi, you are torturing me…! I love so many dishes. In no particular order, I love gyungdan, bibimbap, and kongjang. I love many more dishes than these, but it’s way too hard to choose! Gyungdan… Well, I extoll its delights below. Bibimbab is just awesome, although I’ve been told by one of the owners at my favourite Korean joint in DC (Adam Express) not to use so much of the red hot sauce. What can I say, I love spicy food! Kongjang, although not spicy, is also delicious, unique, and easy to prepare! A great protein-loaded side dish or snack for us vegetarians.

What’s your best Korean dish, the one that everybody compliments you on when you make it?Gyungdan! This isn’t a reflection of my ability to make it well–it’s just such an awesome dessert, you can’t go wrong! The little balls of deliciousness look so pretty, and the taste is amazing. They are also so versatile–the coating adds such variety of flavours and visual delight. They’re fun to prepare, and hard to stop eating!

My mandu tends to be “whatever I have in the fridge,” but it usually includes tofu, mushrooms, and some sort of leafy green. This particular batch had firm tofu, green onions, carrot, black mushrooms, celery, sauteed red amaranth leaves, some garlic, and a few spices inside. (I know this because I uploaded it on Flickr and listed the ingredients there!) The dipping sauce I usually make with soy sauce, rice vinegar, a bit of sugar, and a tiny tiny bit of hot red pepper powder!

Most all of Maangchi’s recipes that are adaptable for vegetarians are tasty. But, I really love sujebi (hand torn noodles), both with the spicy kimchi broth, or the mild version using vegetable broth instead of the anchovy broth. I’ve attempted making some of her meat dishes using meat substitutes (gardein/quorn/etc. products) and the results have been delicious. It’s almost hard to tell the difference between the real thing since the strong Korean flavors mask the slightly funky tastes of the meat substitutes! :)